Abstract: By varying only the thickness of a known material having superior magnetic characteristics to increase spin polarization without changing the chemical composition, a tunnel magnetoresistive element capable of producing a larger magnetoresistive effect is provided. The tunnel magnetoresistive element includes an underlayer (nonmagnetic or antiferromagnetic metal film); an ultrathin ferromagnetic layer disposed on the underlayer; an insulating layer disposed on the ultrathin ferromagnetic layer; and a ferromagnetic electrode disposed on the insulating layer.

Abstract: An organometal having as molecular structural elements both a semiconductor anion atom and cation atom is applied to a substrate and reacted under heating to obtain p-type and n-type semiconductor thin films whose p-n junctions enable fabrication of a semiconductor device, light-emitting element or solar cell.

Abstract: This invention provides a method of suspending and resuming software execution that enables a software execution state to be saved and, as required, transferred to another computer and execution resumed. This is done by including a step of running a second computer program in a real or virtual computer system that emulates functions of a real or virtual computer configured using a first computer program that can save a snapshot of a computer system operation state at a specified time; a step of saving a snapshot of the virtual computer system, or a transmission step; a step of loading the saved or transmitted snapshot on a computer system that substantially corresponds to the real or virtual computer system; and a step of starting operations on a computer system that substantially corresponds to the real or virtual computer system.

Abstract: The present invention provides an input and output device for computer system storage that can prevent a computer system being fatally damaged by a computer virus, and also provides a software execution method that by using the input and output device, enables trial software, trial data and mail data to be safely tried. For this, a virtual computer system is used that runs on a computer system. Writes to a hard disk in the virtual computer system are made via a disk cache, and whether or not data is transferred from the disk cache to the hard disk is controlled. Application program snapshot data created by the computer system is recorded on a recording medium that is substantially read-only or transmitted to a different computer system. The snapshot data from the recording medium is read or received by the different computer system and a processing by the application program is resumed in the state in which data transfer from the disk cache to the first storage has stopped.

Abstract: It is an object to provide an aluminum oxide-based sintered body and a manufacturing method thereof, according to which all of wear resistance, strength and fracture toughness can be exhibited to a high degree in a single sintered body, and there is provided a method of manufacturing a multi-layer aluminum oxide sintered body having high strength and wear resistance as well as high fracture toughness, that has a structure of at least two layers in which a surface layer is a high-strength wear-resistant layer comprising isometric crystals having a small grain size, and an inner part is a high-fracture-toughness layer constituted from anisotropic crystals, the method comprising the steps of (1) preparing a layered body by forming a layer of an aluminum oxide material that has a purity of at least 90% and contains a grain growth inhibiting agent and a layer of an aluminum oxide material that has a purity of at least 90% and contains a grain growth promoting agent, (2) carrying out setting such that the sintering

Abstract: This invention is a method of manufacturing oxide porous bodies and components of alumina and magnesia, using alumina and magnesia powders as raw materials, wherein (1) cold isostatic pressure (CIP) of at least 100 MPa is applied to the materials to introduce a plastic deformation with lattice disorder in the surface vicinity without external changes in the particles, (2) by sintering (calcining) the powders with the above described plastic deformation, the microscopic plastic deformation is removed and, at the same time, formation and growth of necks between grains is induced, (3) from the above described steps (1) and (2), a highly porous body with a structure constituted by a three dimensional network of grains connected through the necks is produced.

Abstract: There is provided an optical system for measurement of optical constant capable of measuring the absolute reflectance and the absolute transmittance for determining the optical constant of a substance with excellent accuracy without replacing the optical system during the measurement by using a different system for measuring the absolute reflectance and the absolute transmittance of the sample, comprising an incoming side beam switching mirror for selectively switching the direction of the light from a light source to a first or second converged light reflecting means side, first and second converged light reflecting means for projecting the light from the beam switching mirror so as to be converged in an intersecting manner at the position of a sample holder, the sample bolder capable of selectively positioning a sample fitting hole or a through hole at the converging position by the converged light reflecting means by advancing/retracting the sample fitting hole or the through hole, first and second receive

Abstract: The present invention is formed by detecting the charged particles generated during film peeling and fragility breaking, so that it is possible to specify a peel occurring time and a fragility breaking time, with a high sensitivity and a high accuracy. In this way, it becomes possible to correctly measure the peel strength and the fragility breaking strength. The method of the invention comprises the steps of pressing an indenter into a test object and measuring an indentation load as well as an indentation depth, while at the same time detecting charged particles omitted from a peel starting point or a breakage starting point; specifying a peel occurring time and a fragility breaking time when charged particles are increased; measuring a peel strength and/or a fragility breaking strength.

Abstract: The present invention provides a novel polishing material with which silicon nitride ceramic and sialon ceramic can be polished at high efficiency through a tribochemical reaction, and a method for manufacturing thereof, said material is used for polishing a silicon nitride ceramic or sialon ceramic as a material being polished, through a tribochemical reaction, and consists of a ceramic sinter containing an element that causes the ceramic being polished to undergo a dissolution reaction at the grain boundary of the sinter, within the particles thereof, and/or in pores thereof.

Abstract: An organometal having as molecular structural elements both a semiconductor anion atom and cation atom is applied to a substrate and reacted under heating to obtain p-type and n-type semiconductor thin films whose p-n junctions enable fabrication of a semiconductor device, light-emitting element or solar cell.

Abstract: An apparatus for measuring electromagnetic characteristics includes a sample rod with a sample fixed to a lower part thereof, a helium 3 refrigerator, in which the sample rod is inserted, having a main pipe that forms around the sample rod a space that is cooled by helium 3, a device for supplying helium 3 to the helium 3 refrigerator, an inner tube portion, into which the main pipe is inserted, that supports at an upper part thereof the refrigerator, an outer tube that cools an outer periphery of the inner tube with helium, a liquid helium container that supplies liquid helium to the outer tube, and a device for measuring the electromagnetic characteristics of the sample.

Abstract: A robot operation teaching method and apparatus includes a three-dimensional measuring system that can measure spatial coordinates corresponding to points designated on camera images, a display able to show a space image from a camera or cameras overlaid by an image of a geometric model corresponding to the space image. A pointing device having at least two degrees of freedom is used to define work trajectories by preparing, in a model space, simple geometric elements corresponding to the actual space image. By using parametric modelling to supply definitions of geometric elements in advance, the geometric elements can be adapted for other tasks by modifying some of the geometric element assignments and parameters associated with the definitions.

Abstract: In an optical information medium comprising an information recording layer having a mark train of marks and spaces, the mark train is read out by scanning it with a laser beam and detecting a light intensity change pattern of reflected laser beam. Provided that the reflected laser beam includes polarized light components which define an angle &thgr; with the mark train, a polarized light component giving &thgr;=0 is x0 component, and a polarized light component giving &thgr;=90° is y0 component, the mark train is read out utilizing at least a light intensity change of x0 component. When pits or recorded marks having a size approximate to or below the resolution limit are read out, the present invention allows high read outputs to be obtained and prevents omission of readout signals.

Abstract: The method of preparing the porous material incorporating ultrafine metal particles comprises the following steps: (1) preparing surface-protected ultrafine metal particles by reducing metal ions in the presence of molecules such as dodecanethiol molecules; (2) immersing a wet gel in a solution of the ultrafine metal particles, thus forming an ultrafine metal particle/wet gel composite in which the ultrafine metal particles are incorporated in the wet gel; and (3) drying the ultrafine metal particle/wet gel composite to form a porous body.

Abstract: An electrically conductive high-melting-point oxide light source that can be used in an oxygen-containing atmosphere includes a sintered oxide having as an essential constituent an oxide of an element selected from the group consisting of ruthenium, iridium, rhodium and rhenium. It is used an oxygen-containing atmosphere at a temperature of not less than 1700° C. A high-melting-point conductive paste includes particles of a sintered oxide having as an essential constituent an oxide of an element selected from the group consisting of ruthenium, iridium, rhodium and rhenium, and a binder and solvent. An exhaust gas filter includes a powdered sintered oxide having as an essential constituent an oxide of an element selected from the group consisting of ruthenium, iridium, rhodium and rhenium, the powdered sintered oxide being applied to and baked on, or formed into a heating element and attached to, a surface of a diesel engine exhaust gas filter of ceramic to form a heating element.

Abstract: A holding device includes a support frame; multiple pairs of holding fixtures mounted on the support frame; a holding fixture pulley attached to one holding fixture of each one pair of holding fixtures; at least one frame pulley attached to the support frame; a drive rope bridging between the holding fixture pulley and the frame pulley and having one end pulled in one direction and the other end fixed to the support frame; and a drive source that pulls the drive rope. With this configuration, when the drive rope is pulled by the drive source, holding fixtures constituting each one pair of holding fixtures are linked to move symmetrically to each other in a direction that holds an object to be held, each one pair of holding fixtures move independently of other pairs of holding fixtures, and the holding fixtures of each one pair of holding fixtures are movable toward and away from each other on a straight line or on two parallel straight lines on a plane of the support frame.

Abstract: A method for producing a lactam by using an organic solvent as a substrate solution, which makes it possible to introduce a high-concentration oxime into flowing high-temperature and high-pressure water, thereby allowing the high-concentration lactam to be synthesized with a high efficiency. With this method, the lactam is continuously synthesized at a high rate from the oxime under high-temperature and high-pressure water mixture conditions within a temperature range of no less than 250° C. and a pressure range of no less than 15 MPa.

Abstract: A capacitance position sensor comprises a pair of opposed tabular electrodes, an LC oscillator circuit having a toroidal core winding and whose oscillating frequency varies with change in capacitance between the pair of electrodes, and an arithmetic processing unit for calculating an absolute value of a distance between the electrodes from the oscillating frequency of the oscillator circuit. A position controller comprises a stationary member formed with one electrode of the pair of electrodes of the position sensor, a movable member on which the other electrode of the pair of electrodes is formed, and moving means for moving the movable member relative to the stationary member.

Abstract: A method for the elimination of high-energy ion in an EUV light-radiating device includes irradiating a first target with a first exciting laser to produce a laser-produced plasma EUV light source and causing a high-energy ion generated simultaneously with EUV light to collide against plasma produced by irradiating a second target with a second laser to separate the high-energy ion from the orbit of the EUV light. An apparatus for the elimination of a high-energy ion in an EUV light-radiating device includes a device for irradiating a first target with a first exciting laser to produce a plasma EUV light source and induce emission of EUV light, a device for irradiating a second target with a second laser to produce plasma, and a device for causing a high-energy ion generated simultaneously with the EUV light to be delayed by difference between an ion flight time and plasma expansion time for ion elimination and collide against the plasma to separate the high-energy ion from the orbit of the EUV light.

Abstract: A method for inspecting multilayer masks to detect any defects includes illuminating a pixel region on a mask to be inspected, using illuminating light having a peak wavelength that is close to that of light reflected by the mask. The illuminating light specularly reflected by the mask is blocked Scattered reflected illuminating light is collected and used to form an enlarged image. An image detector having a large plurality of pixels is used to observe the enlarged image to detect whether there are defects on the mask.